Kolkata, September 3: West Bengal Chief Minister Shubhendu Adhikari accused the previous Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress government of deliberately distorting the Bengali language curriculum for political purposes. Speaking at the annual event of the Vidya Bharati’s state unit, the Vivekananda Vidya Vikas Parishad, he stated that the Bengali language was systematically altered during the previous administration.
He remarked, “Mother was referred to as ‘Ammā’ instead of ‘Mā’, and the sky was called ‘Ākāsh’ instead of ‘Ākāsh’. The Bengali language has been changed in a planned manner. The curriculum was designed in such a way that the teachings of great figures like Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar and Swami Vivekananda were neglected in the education system. Such changes in language created divisions in the minds of children.”
The Chief Minister alleged that both the Left Front government and the subsequent Trinamool Congress government harmed West Bengal’s education system. He stated, “For 34 years, the Left regime obstructed the promotion of the Bengali language. They also halted English education at the primary level, weakening the education system. During the Trinamool government’s tenure, school curricula became victims of appeasement politics. The Bengali language was distorted, and the sense of nationalism and patriotism began to disappear from the education system.”
Shubhendu Adhikari also criticized the Mamata Banerjee government for including the Singur land acquisition movement against Tata Motors in the school curriculum. He pointed out, “The curriculum extensively mentioned the movement that ousted Tata Motors from Singur, but there was no mention of Dr. Syama Prasad Mukherjee’s biography. While former Education Minister Partha Chatterjee was included, biographies of many great freedom fighters were absent.”
The Chief Minister warned that if such an education system continues, it would harm Bengal’s reformist tradition, patriotism, state identity, and nationalism.
Leave a Comment